LA County Board

15. Better Reaching the 95%\nRecommendation as submitted by Supervisor Horvath: Instruct the Chief\nExecutive Officer, in collaboration with the Directors of Public Health, Mental\nHealth, Health Services, Public Social Services, Children and Family Services,\nJustice, Care and Opportunities and Youth Development, the Executive Director\nof the Office of Child Protection, the Chief Probation Officer, the Executive\nDirector of the Homeless Initiative, Chief Executive Office, and other County\nDepartments Heads focused on health, social determinants of health, and public\nsafety to develop plans, in consultation with relevant community stakeholders,\non how those Departments can implement strategies to better engage\nindividuals, including young people, impacted by substance use and ensure\nfamiliarity with accessing needed Substance Use Disorders (SUD) resources;\nprovide education to County staff and pertinent contracted providers including,\nbut not limited to, homeless outreach providers and case managers, on how to\naccess beds in real-time using Department of Public Health (DPH) developed\ntools/resources, such as the Service and Bed Availability Tool, the\nmobile-friendly www.RecoverLA.org platform, and the Substance Abuse Service\nHelpline; and instruct the Director of Public Health to take the following actions:\nPartner with the Directors of Health Services and Mental Health, the\nExecutive Director of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, and\nother outreach providers, to ensure the existing network of outreach\nteams and interim and permanent housing providers are directly\nconnected to all available specialty SUD resources, and Substance\nAbuse Prevention and Control (SAPC) should continue to enhance\ncapacity to provide immediate bed access for people with SUD who\nexpress openness to treatment;\nEnter into new agreements and work orders, and amend or extend\nexisting agreements/work orders for professional and other services via\nexpedited contracting processes, including sole sources and change\nnotices, that support the mission and aims of SAPC's Reaching the 95%\nInitiative; and\nProvide a verbal report back to the Board in February 2024, and in\nwriting in 120 days and biannually thereafter, with a plan to engage\nindividuals with substance use disorders who are not currently accessing\nneeded services and needed resources to accomplish this aim,\nconsiderations in this plan should include, but are not limited to the\nfollowing:\nDescription of existing SUD services and R95 Initiative services\noffered by DPH, and the delivery of an outreach and education\ncampaign to ensure the public is aware of available SUD services\nand how they can be accessed, in culturally and linguistically\nappropriate ways;\nWorking with the Chief Executive Officer and others necessary to\nsupport SAPC’s R95 Initiative including, but not limited to, the\nexpansion of services provided outside of traditional settings\ninclusive of field-based services, outreach and engagement,\nensuring sufficient resources to continue to expand on harm\nreduction services that target the 95% referenced above, all with\nthe broader aim of elevating the visibility of and access to SUD\nservices;\nEngaging local Managed Care Plans (MCP) around the expansion\nof Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment, to\ninclude screening for all drugs as opposed to primarily being\nfocused on alcohol, as well as other strategies the MCPs can be\nimplementing to better reach people who need SUD services, but\naren’t accessing them; and\nEngaging the Los Angeles County Office of Education, secondary\nschool systems and local colleges and universities, on their\nstrategies to prioritize positive youth development programs that\nincrease access to substance use education, early intervention,\nnaloxone, and other substance use and overdose prevention\nresources, all with the broader aim of ensuring that these\npreventative strategies minimize the adverse consequences of\naddiction for youth and young adults. (23-3806)\nAttachments: Motion by Supervisor Horvath\nPublic Comment/Correspondence